Display device viewing angle compensation

ABSTRACT

Various embodiments for compensating for user view angle of a display device are presented. The viewing angle of a user may be determined using sensors. Based on the viewing angle, the attenuation of the output of the display device may be determined. Compensation mode for the display output may be determined. The compensation mode may adjust the output of the display to compensate for the display attenuation allowing an improved image quality at large viewing angles.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a U.S. National Stage of International ApplicationNo. PCT/UA2014/000117, filed on Oct. 24, 2014, which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Display devices such as televisions or monitors often have a preferredviewing angle. When viewed from the preferred angle the display deviceshave good contrast, color and/or brightness. When the display is viewedfrom an angle greater than the preferred angle, the displaycharacteristics may be degraded. In many cases the preferred viewingangle may be too narrow for many applications. In many homes, forexample, a television may be viewed from many different angles as a usermoves around the home. In many cases, users are forced to view thedisplay device outside of the viewing angle with degraded displaycharacteristics.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In various aspects, provided are systems, methods and devices, such astelevision receivers, for correcting images displayed by a displaydevice, such as a television. In a related aspect, computer-programproducts are provided, such as a product tangibly embodied on anon-transitory machine-readable medium with instructions configured tocause a computing device or processor to perform any of the methodsdescribed herein. The systems, methods, devices and products describedherein optionally utilize one or more techniques for changing the outputof a display device to compensate for a change in the contrast, color orbrightness of images displayed by the display device when viewed from anon-preferred viewing angle, such as from a viewing angle where thedisplayed image offers non-acceptable visual performance. Sensors areoptionally used to determine a viewing location of a user in real-timeand adjustments to image settings and/or display device settings aremade in real-time.

In one embodiment, the systems, methods, devices and products describedherein control the display device to adjust the brightness, contrast,color, saturation, luma, hue, tint, shade, etc., of the display deviceto compensate for the viewing angle of a user, such that the user ispresented with an at least partially corrected image from the displaydevice. Optionally, the brightness, contrast, color, saturation, luma,hue, tint, shade, etc., of the entire display device are adjusted.Optionally, the brightness, contrast, color, saturation, luma, hue,tint, shade, etc., of only a portion of the display device is adjusted.Optionally, the brightness, contrast, color, saturation, luma, hue,tint, shade, etc., of different portions of the display device areadjusted independently.

In another embodiment, the systems, methods, devices and productsdescribed herein adjust the brightness, contrast, color, saturation,luma, hue, tint, shade, etc., of an image before it is sent to thedisplay device in order to compensate for the viewing angle of a user,such that the user is presented with an at least partially correctedimage from the display device. Optionally, the brightness, contrast,color, saturation, luma, hue, tint, shade, etc., of the entire image isadjusted. Optionally, the brightness, contrast, color, saturation, luma,hue, tint, shade, etc., of only a portion of an image is adjusted.Optionally, the brightness, contrast, color, hue, tint, shade, etc., ofdifferent portions of an image are adjusted independently.

Optionally, both the display device and the image are adjusted. Forexample, one or more of the brightness, contrast, color, saturation,luma, hue, tint, shade, etc., of the display device, or a portionthereof, and one or more of the brightness, contrast, color, saturation,luma, hue, tint, shade, etc., of an image, or a portion thereof, areadjusted independently.

In one aspect, provided are methods for correction of images displayedby a display device. In a specific embodiment, a method of this aspectcomprises monitoring a position of a first user; determining a firstviewing angle between the display device and the first user, for exampleby using the position of the first user and a position of the displaydevice; determining a first image display setting change to compensatefor attenuation of output of the display device when viewed from thefirst viewing angle; and adjusting image display settings in real-timeto compensate for the attenuation of output of the display device. In anexemplary embodiment, a method of this aspect further comprisesmonitoring a position of a second user; determining a second viewingangle between the display device and the second user, for example byusing the position of second user and the position of the displaydevice; and determining a second image display setting change tocompensate for attenuation of output of the display device when viewedfrom the second viewing angle.

In some situations, multiple users may be positioned at locations forwhich both users experience non-optimal viewing conditions. In variousembodiments, methods of this aspect allow compromises to be made toadjust the image/display to provide the multiple users with displayedimages that, although are not as optimal as they might be for each user,are still optimized at least partially for both users. For example, amethod of this aspect optionally further comprises determining that adifference between the first viewing angle and the second viewing angleis less than a threshold angle; and determining a third image displaysetting change to compensate for attenuation of output of the displaydevice due to a third viewing angle between the first viewing angle andthe second viewing angle. Optionally, the step of adjusting the imagedisplay settings in real-time to compensate for the attenuation ofoutput of the display device includes adjusting the image displaysettings in real-time to compensate for the attenuation of output of thedisplay device when viewed from the third viewing angle. In variousembodiments, the threshold angle is 5 degrees, 10 degrees, 15 degrees,20 degrees, 25 degrees, 30 degrees, 40 degrees or 45 degrees.

In various embodiments, it is desirable to determine whether one or moreusers is actively viewing the display. If only a single user is viewingthe display, though other users may be present, methods of this aspectinclude the ability to optimize the images displayed on a display forthe single user. For example, methods of this aspect optionally furthercomprise tracking activity of the first user and the second user;determining that the activity of the first user is not consistent withthe first user watching the display device; and determining that theactivity of the second user is consistent with the second user watchingthe display device; wherein adjusting the image display settings inreal-time to compensate for the attenuation of output of the displaydevice includes adjusting the image display settings in real-time tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device whenviewed from the second viewing angle. For example, in embodiments,tracking activity includes monitoring motion of the first user and/orthe second user. Optionally, tracking activity includes monitoring eyemovement of the first user and/or the second user.

Optionally, adjustments to the image and/or display settings are made inreal time, such as to account for changes to viewing angles as theyhappen or within a short time period, for example 5 seconds or less, 3seconds or less, 1 second or less or 0.5 seconds or less. In oneembodiment, the step of adjusting image display settings in real-time tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device includesadjusting display settings of the display device in real-time includingone or more of a brightness setting of the display device, a colorsetting of the display device and a contrast setting of the displaydevice. In another embodiment, the step of adjusting image displaysettings in real-time to compensate for the attenuation of output of thedisplay device includes adjusting color, brightness and/or contrastsettings of images provided to the display device in real-time.

In another aspect, provided are television receivers and display devicesfor correction of images displayed by a display device. In an exemplaryembodiment, a television receiver or display device of this aspectcomprises one or more processors and a memory communicatively coupledwith and readable by the one or more processors and having storedtherein processor-readable instructions. In embodiments, theprocessor-readable instructions, when executed by the one or moreprocessors, cause the one or more processors to: monitor a position of afirst user; determine a first viewing angle between the display deviceand the first user; determine a first image display setting change tocompensate for attenuation of output of the display device when viewedfrom the first viewing angle; and adjust image display settings inreal-time to compensate for the attenuation of output of the displaydevice. Optionally, the processor-readable instructions cause the one ormore processors to perform any of the methods described herein.

As will be understood by the skilled artisan, a television receiver ordisplay device of this aspect optionally includes additional componentsto allow the television receiver or display device to receive, decode,demodulate, demultiplex, decompress and/or process signals in order togenerate and/or display viewable images. For example, a televisionreceiver or display device of this aspect optionally includes a radiofrequency receiver for receiving analog or digital transmissions. Adisplay device optionally includes a display panel and associatedcircuitry for displaying images, including moving images. Useful displaydevices include, but are not limited to, liquid crystal displays, lightemitting diode displays, organic light emitting diode displays, plasmadisplays, cathode ray tube displays, projection displays, televisionsets, computer monitors and the like.

In some embodiments, a television receiver or display device of thisaspect further comprises one or more sensors, such as one or moresensors for observing an environment proximate to the display device. Inexemplary embodiments, the one or more sensors are communicativelycoupled with the one or more processors, such as over a wired orwireless connection. Optionally, the one or more processors receivesignals from one or more sensors corresponding to an observation of theenvironment proximate to the display device. Useful sensors include, butare not limited to, cameras, heat sensors, ambient light sensors, depthsensors, motion sensors, arrays of sensors, digital imaging cameras,range finding sensors, passive infrared detection sensors, acousticdistance detection sensors, acoustic cameras, 3D imagers and the like.

In another embodiment, provided are non-transitory processor-readablemedia for correction of images displayed by a display device. Inembodiments, a non-transitory processor-readable medium of this aspectcomprises processor-readable instructions configured to cause the one ormore processors to: monitor a position of a first user; determine afirst viewing angle between the display device and the first user;determine a first image display setting change to compensate forattenuation of output of the display device when viewed from the firstviewing angle; and adjust image display settings in real-time tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device.

In embodiments, a non-transitory processor-readable medium of thisaspect comprises processor-readable instructions configured to cause oneor more processors to perform any of the methods described herein. Forexample, in one embodiment, the processor-readable instructions thatcause the one or more processors to adjust the image display settings inreal-time to compensate for the attenuation of output of the displaydevice cause the one or more processors to adjust display settings ofthe display device in real-time including one or more of a brightnesssetting of the display device, a color setting of the display device anda contrast setting of the display device. In one embodiment, forexample, the processor-readable instructions that cause the one or moreprocessors to adjust the image display settings in real-time tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device cause theone or more processors to adjust color, brightness and/or contrastsettings of images provided to the display device in real-time.

Further areas of applicability of the present disclosure will becomeapparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It shouldbe understood that the detailed description and specific examples, whileindicating various embodiments, are intended for purposes ofillustration only and are not intended to necessarily limit the scope ofthe disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A further understanding of the nature and advantages of variousembodiments may be realized by reference to the following figures. Inthe appended figures, similar components or features may have the samereference label. Further, various components of the same type may bedistinguished by following the reference label by a dash and a secondlabel that distinguishes among the similar components. If only the firstreference label is used in the specification, the description isapplicable to any one or more of the similar components having the samefirst reference label irrespective of the second reference label.

FIG. 1 depicts a home environment with a display device.

FIG. 2 shows an example configuration with four zones.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a system for viewing angle compensation ina home.

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a satellite television distributionsystem.

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a method for determining acompensation mode of a display device.

FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment of a method for determining acompensation mode of a display device with multiple users.

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment of a computer system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The preferred viewing angle of display devices such as televisions ormonitors may be too narrow for many applications. In a home environment,for example, users may view the television as they move around the home.In some arrangements, a user may be within the preferred viewing anglewhen sitting on the couch of a home but may be outside of the preferredviewing angle when viewing from the kitchen. When the user is viewingthe display device outside of the preferred viewing angle, the qualityof the picture and display characteristics may be degraded compared towhen the display device is viewed from within the preferred viewingangle. Outside of the preferred viewing angle, the brightness, colors,contrast, etc., of the display may be degraded. For example, in somedisplay devices the brightness of the display may decrease with theviewing angle, giving the display images a darker appearance with anincreased viewing angle. Some other display devices may attenuate one ormore colors. For example, in many displays, blue colors may beattenuated with an increased viewing angle resulting in colors that areat least partially inverted.

FIG. 1 depicts a home environment with a display device 102. The figuredepicts the layout of an area of a room from an overhead perspective.The display device 102, such as a television, may be centrally locatedin the room. The viewing angle 116 of the display device 102 may be theangle with respect to the normal or perpendicular axis 112 to the screenof the display device 102. The viewing angle may define an area or aviewing cone 110. The viewing cone may represent the preferred viewingangles for which the television 102 provides the best display. Usersviewing the display device 102 within the viewing cone 110 wouldnormally not experience any display degradation. Users viewing thedisplay device 102 outside the cone (i.e., from the chair 106 or thedining area 104) may experience picture degradation due to attenuationof brightness, colors, contrast and the like.

In embodiments, one or more sensors 114 may be used to determine thelocation of a user. For example, one or more sensors 114 may observe theenvironment proximate to the display. Sensors 114 may determine thelocation of the user relative to the sensors 114 and/or the displaydevice 102. Sensor readings may be used to determine the viewing angleof the user for the display device 102. Based on the viewing angle ofthe user, the type of display device, display model, ambient conditions,display picture or the like, the magnitude and type of distortions andattenuations to the display images may be determined. Using themagnitude of the distortions and attenuations, the displaycharacteristics of the television may be adjusted to compensate for thedisplay distortion and attenuation.

In embodiments, the display device output may be adjusted to compensatefor the attenuation or distortion. Optionally, display outputparameters, like the brightness, colors, saturation, contrast and thelike may, be adjusted on the display device. The display outputparameters may be adjusted to provide a display image on the displaydevice closer to the true or accurate display image. For example, forone particular television, the brightness of the screen may decreasewith increased viewing angle. Based on the detected viewing angle of theuser, the brightness of the television screen may be increased tocompensate for the attenuation.

In embodiments, the output of the display may be adjusted by changingthe output setting of the display device. Settings such as brightness,contrast, colors and the like may be adjusted by changing settings onthe display device. For example, brightness may be adjusted byincreasing the intensity of the backlight of the display device. In someembodiments, the output of the display may be adjusted by processing ofthe images to be displayed on the display device.

Images, video and the like may be processed and altered before beingdisplayed on the display device. For some situations, portions of animage may be processed and/or altered before being displayed on adisplay. The images may be altered to change colors, saturation,brightness and the like of the images, or portions thereof, tocompensate for distortions and attenuation when they are viewed at aviewing angle greater than the preferred viewing angle of the display.

In embodiments, sensors 114 may include one or more cameras, heatsensors, ambient light sensors, depth sensors, motion sensors and thelike. The sensors may be used to track the location of a user in a room.An array of motion sensors, for example, is useful for detecting motionof a user. In another example, a digital imaging camera may be used toimage the areas around the television. The captured images may beanalyzed to identify the position of the user.

In some embodiments, sensors may include sensors such as ambient lightsensors, which may be configured to determine the brightness of thelocation of the display device or used to determine if the displaydevice and/or surrounding environment is exposed to direct sunlight.Settings of the display device and/or images, or portions thereof, areoptionally modified to compensate for ambient lighting conditions.

In some implementations, range finding sensors, such as passive infraredor acoustic distance detection systems may be used to determine alocation or motion of a user. For example, three dimensional infraredimage based scanning techniques may be employed to track a user'slocation and/or motion. For example, in some embodiments, the sensorsinclude an acoustic camera or 3D imager. Monitoring a location or motionof a user in real-time advantageously provides systems and methodsdescribed herein with the ability to dynamically alter a display'soutput, in real-time, in response to a user while the user moves, suchthat, for example, an optimal or at least partially improved image canbe presented to the user on the display.

In embodiments, the viewing angle compensation may be infinitelyvariable based on the viewing angle of the user. The viewing anglecompensation, in some embodiments, the viewing angle compensation may belimited to several levels or zones. A level or zone may specify a rangeof viewing angles. For example, FIG. 2 shows an example configurationwith four zones. The system in the figure has the normal preferredviewing cone 110 defined by the angle 116. For the preferred zone nocompensation is typically needed. For viewing angles less than or equalto the angle 206 but greater than angle 116, another zone 202 may bedefined. When a user is detected to be at a viewing angle within thesecond zone, the display device may operate in a first compensationmode. Likewise, additional zone 204 defined between angles 208 and 206may be defined for use of a second compensation mode. A final zone, forviewing angles larger than angle 208, may be defined and may use a thirdcompensation mode. Viewing angle compensation may be divided into two ormore or even 200 or more zones.

In embodiments, the selection between compensation modes or settings maybe manually selected by a user instead or in compliment to automaticdetection using sensors. A user may manually select a compensation modeby selecting a setting using a remote control or other user interface.The user may, by pressing one or more buttons on a remote for example,cycle through two or more compensation modes for the display deviceuntil a satisfactory mode for the viewing angle of the user is found.

In embodiments, compensation modes or settings may be specific to eachdisplay type, model, manufacturer and the like. In some casescompensation modes may be predefined by a manufacturer, service provideror downloaded from a network. In some embodiments, the compensationmodes may be defined by a user. A user may adjust the output parametersof a display and configure the options to be selected when the user isat a specific viewing angle or viewing location or within a specifiedrange of viewing angles.

In some environments more than one user may be within viewing distanceand angle of a display device. In a multi-user environment differentusers may be at different viewing angles to the display device. Theviewing angles may require different compensation modes. In some cases,despite having multiple users near a display device, only one user maybe actively watching the content on the display. Other users around thedisplay device, for example, may be engaged in other tasks or onlylistening to audio output of the display device and not activelywatching or directly looking at the display device. A user that isactively watching the display device may provide an indication that theuser is the active user and the compensation mode should be adjusted tothe viewing angle of the active user. The indication by the user may beprovided by entering remote control commands. The indication by theactive user may be provided with a gesture that may be recognized by thesensors. A gesture such as a wave or a particular hand movement may beused to signal to the sensors the location of the active user.

In some embodiments sensors may determine the location of the activeuser. Sensors may monitor the gestures, eye movement, body position andthe like of the users to identity the active user. For example, camerasensors may monitor the eye position and/or movement of the users.Optionally, a location of a user's gaze is determined. For example,based on the eye position or gaze location, it may be determined whichusers are actively watching the content on the display. A non-viewinguser is optionally ignored, such as someone walking through a roomincluding the display.

In the case when more than one user is actively watching the displaydevice and each user is positioned at a viewing angle that may require adifferent compensation mode, a compromise between the compensation modesmay be made. An average of the compensation modes applicable for thedifferent users may be taken and used for the display device. In somecases other functions may be used with different weighting of thedifferent compensation modes. In some cases if the differences in thecompensation modes required for the two users are less than a threshold,a smaller of two compensation modes may be selected for both usersallowing at least one user to have the optimal picture characteristics.

In embodiments, one or more aspects of the selection of a compensationmode, detection of users and other methods related to adjusting displaysettings for a viewing angle may be performed on the display device. Adisplay device optionally includes one or more sensors. Sensor readingsmay be analyzed using one or more processors of the display device or anassociated device, such as a television receiver.

For example, processing of sensor readings, determination ofcompensation modes and other tasks may be performed by an externaldevice such as a television receiver or a set-top-box (STB). A STB thatis communicatively coupled to a display device may monitor sensorreadings and may determine a compensation mode for the display. The STBmay adjust the settings of the display device to achieve settings of thecompensation mode. The settings of the display device may be adjusted bythe STB using a communication port or other adjustment interface for thedisplay device. In some cases the compensation mode for the display mayinclude processing or adjusting the characteristics of the imagestransmitted to the display device.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a system for viewing angle compensation ina home that includes a receiver 350, such as a television receiver orSTB. The system 300 may include a receiver 350 that is directly orindirectly coupled to one or more display devices 360 such as atelevision, monitor, liquid crystal display (LCD) or plasma display. Thereceiver 350 may be configured to receive readings from one or moresensors 340, 341. Sensors 340, 341 may be wired to the receiver 350. Forexample, sensors 340, 340 may be positioned in data communication withone or more processors of the receiver 350. In some cases, sensors 340,341 may connect wirelessly to the receiver 350 via one or more wirelessprotocols and technologies, such as WiFi, CAN bus, Bluetooth, I2C bus,ZigBee, Z-Wave, wireless USB and/or the like. In some cases, the sensors340, 341 may be part of other devices, consoles or home equipment. Invarious embodiments, the sensors 340, 341 provide observations of anenvironment proximate to the display device 360.

In embodiments, the receiver 350 optionally includes a viewing angleanalysis module 324. The viewing angle analysis module 324 optionallycontrols and receives readings from sensors 340, 341. The viewing angleanalysis module 324 optionally includes or utilizes protocols forcommunicating and interpreting data from the sensors. The viewing angleanalysis module 324 optionally controls the timing of when the sensorsare active. The viewing angle analysis module 324 optionally interpretssensor readings to determine the viewing angle of one or more users.With multiple users, the viewing angle analysis module 324 may analyzesensor readings to determine which users are actively watching thedisplay device. In one example, sensors 340, 341 may include an array ofmotion sensors. Each motion sensor may be positioned in a slightlydifferent direction. The viewing angle analysis module 324 may monitorreadings from the different motion sensors and, based on which motionsensors detect motion of a user, viewing angle analysis module 324 maydetermine the viewing angle of the user. In another example, sensors340, 341 optionally include cameras, such as for taking images aroundthe display device. The images are optionally analyzed by the viewingangle analysis module 324 to identify eyes of users near the displaydevice. The activity, position and direction of the eyes are optionallyused to identify users that are actively watching the display.

The receiver 350 optionally includes a compensation mode module 322. Thecompensation mode module 322 optionally receives viewing angle data fromthe viewing angle analysis module 324. Based on the viewing angle of theone or more users, the compensation mode module 322 can advantageouslydetermine a compensation mode for the display device 360. Thecompensation mode may include adjustments to the output characteristicsof the display device 360. The compensation mode module 322 may accessone or more databases 326 that include display data, such as informationabout various displays, manufacturers, optimal viewing angles, etc.Database 326 advantageously includes data for the output characteristicsof the display device 360. The database characteristics may include datarelated to the attenuation of output at various angles for the displaydevice 360 or the type of display. Based on the data from the database326, the compensation mode module 322 may determine adjustments to theoutput of the display device 360 to compensate for the attenuations. Thereceiver 350 optionally transmits commands to the display device tochange the output characteristics of the display device.

In some embodiments, however, the compensation mode module 322 maydetermine adjustments to the images transmitted to the display device360. Images transmitted from the receiver 350 to the display device 360may be modified before being sent to the display device to compensatefor attenuations at different viewing angles. The compensation modemodule 322 may determine which colors to enhance in the images or maydetermine optimal brightness or contrast settings for the images.Filters may be applied to the images using an image processor 328 moduleoptionally included in receiver 350. The image processor 328 module mayfilter or apply transformations, such as color adjustments, colorswapping, brightness changes, contrast adjustments and the like, tocompensate for attenuations.

The compensation mode module 322, when determining a compensation mode,may receive data from user preferences 320. The user preferences mayoverride compensation mode settings for one or more viewing angles.

Various techniques may be used to detect or improve the detection of auser, such as by using the sensors to determine the viewing angle of theuser. In one example, the sensors, such as cameras may collect baselineor background sensor readings. Background or baseline sensor readingsmay be captured over time during different times of the day or week. Newcaptured sensor readings may be compared against background sensorreadings to identify changes in the readings. In one example, adifference between the background sensor readings and a new capturedsensor reading may be determined. Differences in the sensor readings mayreveal the position of a user.

During operation of the system 300, readings from the sensors 340, 341may be collected and stored in the receiver 350. In embodiments, ahistorical record of sensor readings and user location and viewing anglemay be used to enhance user location detection. Ambiguities in sensorreadings or sensor readings that indicate that the user may be in one oftwo locations, for example, may be supplemented with the historicaldata. Historical data may indicate that, during a specific time period,for example, a user is typically in a first location and has never beendetected in the second location during the specific time period. Thesystem 300 may use the historical position and data and configure thecompensation mode consistent with the historical location of the user.

In embodiments the television receiver may be configured to provide theautomatically generated or determined compensation mode settings to auser, such as by way of a user interface. An interface may allow theuser to modify one or more settings of the compensation modes. Displaydevices such as television, laptops, tablets, smartphones and the likemay be used for presenting to the user the interfaces for modifying thecompensation mode settings. An interface may include one or moreoptions, selection tools, navigation tools, etc., for modifying andviewing the compensation mode settings.

Display interfaces may be used to select and/or download display datafor displays. In some cases, the model or type of the display device maynot be automatically determined and may need to be manually specified bya user. A user may input, using the interface, the model or type of thedisplay. In some cases, display data may not be available and the usermay select a generic display data as a baseline from which compensationmodes may be established. The user may then edit the compensation modesto match the display characteristics. User modifications of compensationmodes may be transmitted to a service provider. The service provider mayuse user modifications to update or change algorithms for determiningthe compensation modes.

Viewing angle compensation may be performed in television receivers orSTBs for a satellite-based television system. Viewing angle compensationmay also be performed in television receivers designated for othertelevision systems, such as cable, IPTV, terrestrial or hybrid systems.An embodiment of a satellite-based television system is illustrated inFIG. 4. As illustrated, satellite television distribution system 400includes: television service provider system 410, satellite transmitterequipment 420, satellites 430, satellite dish 440, receiver 350 anddisplay device 460, such as a television. Alternate embodiments ofsatellite television distribution system 400 may include fewer orgreater numbers of components. While only one satellite dish 440,receiver 350 and display device 460 (collectively referred to as “userequipment”) are illustrated, it should be understood that multiple(e.g., tens, thousands, millions) instances of user equipment mayreceive television signals from television service provider system 410via satellites 430.

Television service provider system 410 and satellite transmitterequipment 420 may be operated by a television service provider. Atelevision service provider may distribute television channels,on-demand programming, programming information, marketing content and/orother content/services to users. In some embodiments the televisionservice provider 410 may distribute or provide a gateway or library ofdisplay data related to output degradation at various viewing angles.

To distribute television channels for presentation to users, feeds ofthe television channels may be relayed to user equipment, for examplevia multiple television distribution satellites. Each satellite mayrelay multiple transponder streams. Satellite transmitter equipment 420(420-1, 420-2) may be used to transmit a feed of one or more televisionchannels from television service provider system 410 to one or moresatellites 430. While a single television service provider system 410and satellite transmitter equipment 420 are illustrated as part ofsatellite television distribution system 400, it should be understoodthat multiple instances of transmitter equipment may be used, such asscattered geographically, to communicate with satellites 430. Suchmultiple instances of satellite transmitting equipment may communicatewith the same or with different satellites. Different televisionchannels may be transmitted to satellites 430 from different instancesof transmitting equipment. For instance, a different satellite dish ofsatellite transmitter equipment 420 may be used for communication withsatellites in different orbital slots.

Satellites 430 may be configured to receive signals, such as streams oftelevision channels, from one or more satellite uplinks such assatellite transmitter equipment 420. Satellites 430 may relay receivedsignals from satellite transmitter equipment 420 (and/or other satellitetransmitter equipment) to multiple instances of user equipment viatransponder streams. Different frequencies may be used for uplinksignals 470 from transponder streams 480.

Satellite dish 440 may be a piece of user equipment that is used toreceive transponder streams from one or more satellites, such assatellites 430. Satellite dish 440 may be provided to a subscriber foruse on a subscription basis to receive television channels provided bythe television service provider system 410, satellite transmitterequipment 420 and/or satellites 430.

In communication with satellite dish 440 may be one or more receivers350. Television receivers may be configured to decode signals receivedfrom satellites 430 via satellite dish 440 for output and presentationvia the display device 460, such as a television, a plasma panel or aliquid crystal display panel or projector. A receiver 350 may beincorporated as part of a television or may be part of a separatedevice, commonly referred to as a set-top box.

Display device 460 may be used to present video and/or audio decoded andoutput by receiver 350. Receiver 350 may also output a display of one ormore interfaces to display device 460, such as an electronic programmingguide (EPG). The receiver 350 may output to a display device 460 one ormore interfaces for modifying the compensation modes. In manyembodiments, display device 460 is a television. Display device 460 mayalso be a monitor, computer, projector or some other device configuredto display video and, optionally, play audio.

The receiver 350, may determine the compensation mode for the displaysettings using a compensation mode module 322. The receiver 350 mayadjust the output settings of the display device 460 according to thecompensation mode. The receiver 350 optionally transmits commands to thedisplay device to adjust the colors, brightness and other settings.

In some embodiments, after decoding of the programming and televisionchannels received from the satellites, the content may be modifiedbefore the content is presented on the display device. Content may befiltered or processed to adjust the colors of the images to be presentedon the display device. The images may be filtered or processed accordingto the compensation mode for the viewing angle of the user.

Network 490 may serve as a secondary communication channel betweentelevision service provider system 410 and receiver 350. Via such asecondary communication channel, bidirectional exchange of data mayoccur. Data may be transmitted to television service provider system 410from receiver 350 via network 490. Data may also be transmitted fromtelevision service provider system 410 to receiver 350 via network 490.Network 490 may include portions of the Internet. The network 490 may beused to transfer display data to the receiver 350. The network 490 maybe used to transfer user modification of the compensation mode settingsto the service provider.

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a method 500 for determining acompensation mode of a display device. Method 500 may be performed usingthe systems previously described. For instance, satellite televisiondistribution system 400 of FIG. 4 or the system 300 of FIG. 3 may beused. Components of such systems may be implemented using hardware,software and/or firmware. Further, the performance of method 500 mayinclude one or more instances of the components of computer system 700of FIG. 7.

At block 502, the position of a user may be monitored using sensors.Various sensors such as motion sensors, cameras, thermal sensors and thelike may be used to determine the location of a user. Based on thelocation of the user and the location of a display device the viewingangle of the user to the display device may be determined at step 504.In some embodiments sensors may provide other information, in additionto the location of the user. Sensors may be used to determine ambientconditions in at step 506. Ambient conditions may include ambient lightconditions, temperature and the like. In some cases ambient lightconditions or the temperature may affect the output of the displaydevice. Lower temperature may, for some display devices, reduce thebrightness of a backlight. Likewise, bright lights or direct sunlightmay also reduce the appearance of brightness of the display device.

At step 508, the expected attenuation of the output signal of thedisplay device at the user's viewing angle may be determined. Theexpected attenuation may also include the ambient sensor readings. Theexpected attenuation may be determined from a display data file. Adisplay data file may include expected attenuation data for a particularmodel or type of display. At step 510, the compensation mode may bedetermined. The compensation mode may identify which colors, parametersor settings of a display may require adjustment to compensate for theattenuations at the viewing angle. In some cases the compensation modemay take into account the age of the display device. As a display deviceages the output of some colors or the brightness of the display maydecrease. The age of the display device may be determined automaticallyby identifying a manufacture date, run hours, serial number or otheridentifiers from the display device. In some cases the age of thedisplay device may be provided by the user. At step 512, the settings ofthe display may be adjusted. The settings may be adjusted by sendingcommands to the display device via one or more control ports on thedisplay device.

FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment of a method 600 for determining acompensation mode of a display device with multiple users. Method 600 isoptionally performed using the systems previously described. Forinstance, satellite television distribution system 400 of FIG. 4 or thesystem 300 of FIG. 3 may be used. Components of such systems may beimplemented using hardware, software and/or firmware. Further, theperformance of method 600 may include one or more instances of thecomponents of computer system 700 of FIG. 7.

At step 602, sensors are used to monitor the position of users. At step604, the viewing angle of each user is determined from the sensor data.In some cases the sensor data optionally identifies which users areactively watching the display and filter or ignore the position of theusers that may be engaged in other activities. Cameras and other sensorsmay be used to monitor the activity of users, their eyes and otheraspects to gauge their engagement with the display device.

At step 606, the largest difference between the viewing angles of activeusers is determined. If the difference in the viewing angles is largerthan a threshold, such as 20 degrees or 5 degrees or more, thecompensation mode is determined for the largest viewing angle at step614. If the difference in the viewing angles is smaller than thethreshold, the average of the viewing angles is calculated, at step 610,and the compensation mode determined for the average angle at step 612.

A computer system as illustrated in FIG. 7 may be incorporated as partof the previously described devices and systems, such as the describedtelevision receivers. FIG. 7 provides a schematic illustration of oneembodiment of a computer system 700 that can perform various steps ofthe methods provided by various embodiments. It should be noted thatFIG. 7 is meant only to provide a generalized illustration of variouscomponents, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate. FIG. 7,therefore, broadly illustrates how individual system elements may beimplemented in a relatively separated or relatively more integratedmanner.

The computer system 700 is shown comprising hardware elements that canbe electrically coupled via a bus 705 (or may otherwise be incommunication, as appropriate). The hardware elements may include one ormore processors 710, including without limitation one or moregeneral-purpose processors and/or one or more special-purpose processors(such as digital signal processing chips, graphics accelerationprocessors, video decoders and/or the like); one or more input devices715, which optionally include, without limitation, a mouse, a keyboard,a remote control and/or the like; and one or more output devices 720,which can include, without limitation, a display device, a printerand/or the like.

The computer system 700 may further include (and/or be in communicationwith) one or more non-transitory storage devices 725, which cancomprise, without limitation, local and/or network accessible storageand/or can include, without limitation, a disk drive, a drive array, anoptical storage device, a solid-state storage device, such as a randomaccess memory (“RAM”) and/or a read-only memory (“ROM”), which can beprogrammable, flash-updateable and/or the like. Such storage devices maybe configured to implement any appropriate data stores, includingwithout limitation, various file systems, database structures and/or thelike.

The computer system 700 might also include a communications subsystem730, which can include without limitation a modem, a network card(wireless or wired), an infrared communication device, a wirelesscommunication device and/or a chipset (such as a Bluetooth™ device, an802.11 device, a WiFi device, a WiMax device, cellular communicationdevice, etc.) and/or the like. The communications subsystem 730 maypermit data to be exchanged with a network (such as the networkdescribed below, to name one example), other computer systems and/or anyother devices described herein. In many embodiments, the computer system700 will further comprise a working memory 735, which can include a RAMor ROM device or other storage medium, as described above.

The computer system 700 also can comprise software elements, shown asbeing currently located within the working memory 735, including anoperating system 740, device drivers, executable libraries and/or othercode, such as one or more application programs 745, which may comprisecomputer programs provided by various embodiments and/or may be designedto implement methods and/or configure systems, provided by otherembodiments, as described herein. Merely by way of example, one or moreprocedures described with respect to the method(s) discussed above isoptionally implemented as code and/or instructions executable by acomputer (and/or a processor within a computer); in an aspect, then,such code and/or instructions can be used to configure and/or adapt ageneral purpose computer (or other device) to perform one or moreoperations in accordance with the described methods.

A set of these instructions and/or code might be stored on anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium, such as thenon-transitory storage device(s) 725 described above. In some cases, thestorage medium might be incorporated within a computer system, such ascomputer system 700. In other embodiments, the storage medium might beseparate from a computer system (e.g., a removable medium, such as acompact disc) and/or provided in an installation package, such that thestorage medium can be used to program, configure and/or adapt a generalpurpose computer with the instructions/code stored thereon. Theseinstructions might take the form of executable code, which is executableby the computer system 700 and/or might take the form of source and/orinstallable code, which, upon compilation and/or installation on thecomputer system 700 (e.g., using any of a variety of generally availablecompilers, installation programs, compression/decompression utilities,etc.), then takes the form of executable code.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that substantialvariations may be made in accordance with specific requirements. Forexample, customized hardware might also be used and/or particularelements might be implemented in hardware, software (including portablesoftware, such as applets, etc.) or both. Further, connection to othercomputing devices such as network input/output devices may be employed.

As mentioned above, in one aspect, some embodiments may employ acomputer system (such as the computer system 700) to perform methods inaccordance with various embodiments of the invention. According to a setof embodiments, some or all of the procedures of such methods areperformed by the computer system 700 in response to processor 710executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions (which mightbe incorporated into the operating system 740 and/or other code, such asan application program 745) contained in the working memory 735. Suchinstructions may be read into the working memory 735 from anothercomputer-readable medium, such as one or more of the non-transitorystorage device(s) 725. Merely by way of example, execution of thesequences of instructions contained in the working memory 735 mightcause the processor(s) 710 to perform one or more procedures of themethods described herein.

The terms “machine-readable medium,” “computer-readable storage medium”and “computer-readable medium,” as used herein, refer to any medium thatparticipates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in aspecific fashion. These mediums may be non-transitory. In an embodimentimplemented using the computer system 700, various computer-readablemedia might be involved in providing instructions/code to processor(s)710 for execution and/or might be used to store and/or carry suchinstructions/code. In many implementations, a computer-readable mediumis a physical and/or tangible storage medium. Such a medium may take theform of a non-volatile media or volatile media. Non-volatile mediainclude, for example, optical and/or magnetic disks, such as thenon-transitory storage device(s) 725. Volatile media include, withoutlimitation, dynamic memory, such as the working memory 735.

Common forms of physical and/or tangible computer-readable mediainclude, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk,magnetic tape or any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, any other opticalmedium, any other physical medium with patterns of marks, a RAM, a PROM,EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge or any othermedium from which a computer can read instructions and/or code.

Various forms of computer-readable media may be involved in carrying oneor more sequences of one or more instructions to the processor(s) 710for execution. Merely by way of example, the instructions may initiallybe carried on a magnetic disk and/or optical disc of a remote computer.A remote computer might load the instructions into its dynamic memoryand send the instructions as signals over a transmission medium to bereceived and/or executed by the computer system 700.

The communications subsystem 730 (and/or components thereof) generallywill receive signals and the bus 705 then might carry the signals(and/or the data, instructions, etc. carried by the signals) to theworking memory 735, from which the processor(s) 710 retrieves andexecutes the instructions. The instructions received by the workingmemory 735 may optionally be stored on a non-transitory storage device725 either before or after execution by the processor(s) 710.

It should further be understood that the components of computer system700 can be distributed across a network. For example, some processingmay be performed in one location using a first processor while otherprocessing may be performed by another processor remote from the firstprocessor. Other components of computer system 700 may be similarlydistributed. As such, computer system 700 may be interpreted as adistributed computing system that performs processing in multiplelocations. In some instances, computer system 700 may be interpreted asa single computing device, such as a distinct laptop, desktop computeror the like, depending on the context.

The methods, systems and devices discussed above are examples. Variousconfigurations may omit, substitute or add various procedures orcomponents as appropriate. For instance, in alternative configurations,the methods may be performed in an order different from that describedand/or various stages may be added, omitted and/or combined. Also,features described with respect to certain configurations may becombined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elementsof the configurations may be combined in a similar manner. Also,technology evolves and, thus, many of the elements are examples and donot limit the scope of the disclosure or claims.

Specific details are given in the description to provide a thoroughunderstanding of example configurations (including implementations).However, configurations may be practiced without these specific details.For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures andtechniques have been shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoidobscuring the configurations. This description provides exampleconfigurations only and does not limit the scope, applicability orconfigurations of the claims. Rather, the preceding description of theconfigurations will provide those skilled in the art with an enablingdescription for implementing described techniques. Various changes maybe made in the function and arrangement of elements without departingfrom the spirit or scope of the disclosure.

Also, configurations may be described as a process which is depicted asa flow diagram or block diagram. Although each may describe theoperations as a sequential process, many of the operations can beperformed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of theoperations may be rearranged. A process may have additional steps notincluded in the figure. Furthermore, examples of the methods may beimplemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode,hardware description languages or any combination thereof. Whenimplemented in software, firmware, middleware or microcode, the programcode or code segments to perform the necessary tasks may be stored in anon-transitory computer-readable medium such as a storage medium.Processors may perform the described tasks.

Having described several example configurations, various modifications,alternative constructions and equivalents may be used without departingfrom the spirit of the disclosure. For example, the above elements maybe components of a larger system, wherein other rules may takeprecedence over or otherwise modify the application of the invention.Also, a number of steps may be undertaken before, during or after theabove elements are considered.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for correction of images displayed by adisplay device, the method comprising: monitoring, using a signal fromone or more sensors for observing an environment proximate to thedisplay device, a first position of a first user relative to the displaydevice, and a second position of a second user relative to the displaydevice; determining a first viewing angle between the display device andthe first user using the first position of the first user relative tothe display device, and a second viewing angle between the displaydevice and the second user using the second position of the second userrelative to the display device; determining a first image displaysetting change to compensate for attenuation of output of the displaydevice when viewed from the first viewing angle and a second imagedisplay setting change to compensate for attenuation of output of thedisplay device when viewed from the second viewing angle, whereindetermining the first image display setting change and the second imagedisplay setting change includes using expected attenuation data for thedisplay device, and wherein the expected attenuation data is determinedusing a data file for the display device; determining, according to theone or more sensors the environment proximate to the display device, anambient condition of the environment proximate to the display device;and adjusting image display settings in real-time to modify an outputimage displayed by the display device to compensate for the attenuationof output of the display device in accordance with determining the firstimage display setting change, the second image display setting change,and the ambient condition, wherein the image display settings includeone or more of a brightness setting, a color setting, or a contrastsetting.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining thata difference between the first viewing angle and the second viewingangle is less than a threshold angle; determining a third image displaysetting change to compensate for attenuation of output of the displaydevice due to a third viewing angle between the first viewing angle andthe second viewing angle; and adjusting the image display settings inreal-time to modify the output image displayed by the display device tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device whenviewed from the third viewing angle.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereinthe image display settings include a brightness setting, a colorsetting, and a contrast setting.
 4. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: tracking activity of the first user and the second user;determining that the activity of the first user is not consistent withthe first user watching the display device; determining that theactivity of the second user is consistent with the second user watchingthe display device; and adjusting the image display settings inreal-time to modify the output image displayed by the display device tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device whenviewed from the second viewing angle.
 5. The method of claim 4, whereintracking activity includes monitoring motion of the first user and thesecond user.
 6. The method of claim 4, wherein tracking activityincludes monitoring eye movement of the first user and the second user.7. The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting image display settings inreal-time to modify the output image displayed by the display device tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device-includesadjusting output display settings of the display device in real-timeincluding one or more of a brightness setting of the display device, acolor setting of the display device and a contrast setting of thedisplay device.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting imagedisplay settings in real-time to compensate for the attenuation ofoutput of the display device includes transforming input images providedto the display device in real-time by applying one or more of abrightness transformation, a color transformation, or a contrasttransformation.
 9. A television receiver for correction of imagesdisplayed by a display device, the television receiver comprising: oneor more processors; one or more sensors for observing an environmentproximate to the display device, wherein the one or more sensors arecommunicatively coupled with the one or more processors; and anon-transitory memory communicatively coupled with and readable by theone or more processors and having stored therein processor-readableinstructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, causethe one or more processors to perform operations including: monitoring,using a signal from the one or more sensors, a first position of a firstuser relative to the display device, and a second position of a seconduser relative to the display device; determining a first viewing anglebetween the display device and the first user using the first positionof the first user relative to the display device, and a second viewingangle between the display device and the second user using the secondposition of the second user relative to the display device; determininga first image display setting change to compensate for attenuation ofoutput of the display device when viewed from the first viewing angleand a second image display setting change to compensate for attenuationof output of the display device when viewed from the second viewingangle, wherein determining the first image display setting change andthe second image display setting change includes using expectedattenuation data for the display device, and wherein the expectedattenuation data is determined using a data file for the display device;determining, according to the one or more sensors the environmentproximate to the display device, an ambient condition of the environmentproximate to the display device; and adjusting image display settings inreal-time to modify an output image displayed by the display device tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device inaccordance with determining the first image display setting change, thesecond image display setting change, and the ambient condition, whereinthe image display settings include one or more of a brightness setting,a color setting, or a contrast setting.
 10. The television receiver ofclaim 9, wherein the operations further comprise: determining that adifference between the first viewing angle and the second viewing angleis less than a threshold angle; determining a third image displaysetting change to compensate for attenuation of output of the displaydevice due to a third viewing angle between the first viewing angle andthe second viewing angle; and adjusting the image display settings inreal-time to modify the output image displayed by the display device tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device whenviewed from the third viewing angle.
 11. The television receiver ofclaim 9, wherein the operations further comprise: track activity of thefirst user and the second user; determining that the activity of thefirst user is not consistent with the first user watching the displaydevice; determining that the activity of the second user is consistentwith the second user watching the display device; and adjusting theimage display settings in real-time to modify the output image displayedby the display device to compensate for the attenuation of output of thedisplay device when viewed from the second viewing angle.
 12. Thetelevision receiver of claim 9, wherein the operations further includedetermining a compensation mode identifying which colors, parameters orsettings of the display require adjustment to compensate for attenuationof output of the display device when viewed from the first viewingangle, and wherein determining the first image display setting changefurther includes using the compensation mode.
 13. The televisionreceiver of claim 9, wherein the image display settings include abrightness setting, a color setting, and a contrast setting.
 14. Anon-transitory processor-readable medium for correction of imagesdisplayed by a display device, the medium comprising processor-readableinstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause theone or more processors to perform operations including: monitoring,using a signal from one or more sensors for observing an environmentproximate to the display device, a first position of a first userrelative to the display device, and a second position of a second userrelative to the display device; determining a first viewing anglebetween the display device and the first user using the first positionof the first user relative to the display device, and a second viewingangle between the display device and the second user using the secondposition of the second user relative to the display device; determininga first image display setting change to compensate for attenuation ofoutput of the display device when viewed from the first viewing angleand a second image display setting change to compensate for attenuationof output of the display device when viewed from the second viewingangle, wherein determining the first image display setting change andthe second image display setting change includes using expectedattenuation data for the display device, and wherein the expectedattenuation data is determined using a data file for the display device;determining, according to the one or more sensors the environmentproximate to the display device, an ambient condition of the environmentproximate to the display device; and adjusting image display settings inreal-time to modify an output image displayed by the display device tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device inaccordance with determining the first image display setting change, thesecond image display setting change, and the ambient condition, whereinthe image display settings include one or more of a brightness setting,a color setting, or a contrast setting.
 15. The non-transitoryprocessor-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the operations furtherinclude: determining that a difference between the first viewing angleand the second viewing angle is less than a threshold angle; determininga third image display setting change to compensate for attenuation ofoutput of the display device due to a third viewing angle between thefirst viewing angle and the second viewing angle; and adjusting theimage display settings in real-time to modify the output image displayedby the display device to compensate for the attenuation of output of thedisplay device when viewed from the third viewing angle.
 16. Thenon-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 14, wherein theoperations further include: tracking activity of the first user and thesecond user; determining that the activity of the first user is notconsistent with the first user watching the display device; determiningthat the activity of the second user is consistent with the second userwatching the display device; and adjusting the image display settings inreal-time to modify the output image displayed by the display device tocompensate for the attenuation of output of the display device whenviewed from the second viewing angle.
 17. The non-transitoryprocessor-readable medium of claim 14, adjusting image display settingsin real-time to modify the output image displayed by the display deviceto compensate for the attenuation of output of the display deviceincludes: adjusting output display settings of the display device inreal-time including one or more of a brightness setting of the displaydevice, a color setting of the display device and a contrast setting ofthe display device; and/or transforming input images provided to thedisplay device in real-time by applying one or more of a brightnesstransformation, a color transformation, and a contrast transformation.